3 - 7-8 week old boys penis all elongated

[jandjrehab]

Hi everyone. I am a new provisional rehabber and was given 4 6-7 year old squirrels to rehab a week ago. We have noticed that all 3 of them have long penis's. I was told that they nurse on eachother and I was told to put "yuck" on them to detour them from nursing on them. However, just wanted to know if they are suppose to look like this or should I separate them. Any help would be appreciated for this ROOKIE. :)

[RockyPops]

Check back often. Someone will be able to help you.

From an amateur...
I think this is a common problem. There may be a topical that can help, or if you can separate them for a while in different cages (I know three right?).

There can be problems with then getting sore and infected and they may need stimulation to urinate.

Pictures are always helpful and weights if you can get them in case meds are needed.

Thanks for helping them and check back for responses.

[redwuff]

This can be very serious. If any of the penis are raw do not put Yuk! on it. Can you find out who is doing it? The behavior has to be stopped. The damage can be so severe that occasionally the baby has to be euthanized. Yuk! does not always work and you have to separate the babies. Can you post a picture of the babies? What formula are you feeding?

Make sure the babies can pee.

[island rehabber]

MOST of the time, genital sucking is due to hunger: the babies are not being fed often enough or the caregiver is withholding the amount of food they are given because they take the "5% rule" too seriously. 7-8 week olds can often take 20-30cc's of formula 3-4 times per day, although I try to get mine on 3x day as soon as I can. I suspect that is the case with your boys, and ramping up the amount of formula while feeding a bit more often will solve what can be a very serious problem if not caught in time.

Remember: the "5-7%" thing is a GUIDELINE, not a commandment. Babies should take a minimum of 5%, and 7% is max. HOWEVER, if a baby is strong and thriving and wants 8, 9 or even 10% while producing perfect poops -- LET THEM. It's what they need.

[jandjrehab]

Thank you all so much. Here is the history of the 3 males. We were called a week ago to come and get them. The man who had them from his yard said they were all coming down the tree in his backyard with no mother around. He watched until the next day and they were still clinging to tree with no mother. He collected them but kept them in a small box in his garage but fed them only 8 cc. Being so confined and not eating much may have caused this based on what you are saying. I have had them for a little over a week and they are thriving, energetic, eating 3 times a day anywhere from 12-20 cc's each time. They are getting rodent block mostly with leaves and twigs and climbing well. Since I got them like this and you know how scarce colorado squirrel rehabbers are with expertise, I now have a great resource with all of you in this community. So thank you all. I am posting a picture of one male but they all look like this and they are not any worse than when we received them and are no longer looking irritated. Are they scarred for life? Poor guys. Their sister is doing reat as well and they have all put on weight in last week , Thank you all for your help and guidance.
Judy & John

Weights of all
Female 185 g
Male 214 g
Male 214g
Male 209g

[Mel1959]

With time their penis’s May go down in size, but may not ever go back to completely normal. The fact that they aren’t irritated is good, but you should continue to observe them to be sure there isn’t any more suckling going on.

I had a real problem with the 4 that I have, 3 boys and a girl. One of the boys and the girl were suckler in spite of feeding often and enough at each feeding. I had to separate them into 3 separate bins for awhile. The only time I let them be together was right after I fed them and while I was sitting there watching them. :tap I didn’t want them to be separated too long because I didn’t want their bond to be broken.

I had a male one time that was suckled by his brother and his penis looked like your guys’. His never did go back to looking like it was normal even after a couple of years.

Yuk! did not seem to help, in my case.

Just be sure that there is no scab over the opening and that urine flows freely.

[jandjrehab]

Thank you so much for for your response. I will take your advice. It is sad but I am glad in a way it happens. You are all so wonderful. :thankyou